Editorial: Are The Recent Building Collapses Reminders Of Systemic Failure?

A second storey-building has collapsed in Cape Coast, killing one person, five days after a similar incident killed two people, according to Graphiconline report.
This latest incident happened Tuesday dawn at Idun, near Amissah Ekyir around 2am, leading to the death of one Ernestina Nduom.

The Mayor of Cape Coast, George Justice Arthur, broke the news of Madam Ernestina Nduom’s tragic passing to the family after she was rushed to the hospital.
Two persons were rescued from the rubble and rushed to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital for treatment.

Last Saturday, a collapsed building killed two elderly persons and injured three others at the London Bridge in Cape Coast. This brings to three the number of deaths caused by collapsed buildings in less than a week after heavy rains.

Cape Coast has some very old homes in the central area. The Metropolitan Chief Executive for Cape Coast, Justice George Arthur, has said all such structures would be demolished to avert more disasters, as heavy rains set in.
First of all, The Chronicle finds the incidences of collapsing buildings very appalling. These recent building collapses in Cape Coast are more than just tragic accidents, they are stark reminders of a systemic failure that continues to put lives at risk.

In just under a week, three people have died, families have been torn apart and yet again the question echoes: How many more must die before we act?
The alarming frequency of these collapses now three within days makes it painfully clear that Cape Coast, like many cities across Ghana, is sitting on a structural time bomb. And the culprit is not just the rain. It is the lack of oversight, poor enforcement of building standards and decades of institutional negligence.

Where were the inspections? Where was the routine assessment of older buildings, especially as the rainy season approached? Why are buildings still being occupied without proper structural evaluation? The answers are buried beneath the rubble along with innocent lives.

Local assemblies, mandated to supervise and regulate construction activities, have failed to rise to their duty. Too often, buildings go up without the proper permits or oversight. In many cases, substandard materials are used, and construction is supervised by unqualified individuals. The absence of enforcement, compounded by bureaucracy and corruption, has turned our communities into dangerous zones.

This is not a Cape Coast problem alone. It is a national crisis—one that calls for a coordinated effort across all districts and municipalities. The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development must issue urgent directives for comprehensive audits of buildings, particularly in areas prone to flooding and structural wear.

We cannot continue to treat these tragedies as isolated events. Every building collapse is a failure of leadership, a collapse of responsibility. The cost of ignoring this issue is being paid in human lives—and that is too high a price.
If we do not act now, more families will wake up to the horror of crumbled homes and lost loved ones. Let these recent deaths be the last and let them mark the beginning of real, lasting change.

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